Tebow Should Start Over Orton

There may not be a bigger debate in sports right now than whether Tim Tebow should start for the Broncos this season, but the answer seems clearer each day and that is a resounding yes. The only reason to start Kyle Orton this year is to raise his trade value in the hopes of getting a defensive playmaker from another team. Unfortunately for Orton, he was not traded to the Vikings, where under offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave he would have been a better fit than McNabb just based on the fact that he had already had some success in the division when played for the Bears. Normally fans should not get what they want because if coaching staffs did everything that fans typically wanted they would quickly lose their jobs. However, in the Orton-Tebow debate, the fans have it right, Tebow should start this season.

John Fox
Fox throughout his time as head coach of the Panthers was known for coaching teams that were extremely physical and ran the ball. The Broncos will pound the football this season, which means relying heavily on Knowshon Moreno and newly signed Willis McGahee. Since, that will be the identity of the offense there really is no reason not to start Tebow this season, in fact he adds more versatility than Orton in certain situations. For example, on 3rd down and short situations, right now Orton is going to hand the ball off or try to complete a quick pass, but he is not likely to run the ball, which gives the defense one less thing to think about. However, Tebow in 3rd down and short situations is easily capable of running ball and that gives the Broncos a much better chance of consistently converting short 3rd down situations. Fox’s current plan for the offense means Tebow should start.

Youth is His Advantage
One of the major criticisms against Tebow has been that he is not ready and there seems to be an overwhelming sentiment that everything needs to slow down for Tebow to become an effective starting quarterback. However, Tebow does not need to be babied or coddled because he is ready. If Tebow waits four to five years to start like many experts think he should, it could be a negative thing. Right now by placing him on the bench the team is possibly risking him losing his passion for the game, possibly losing some speed or even his will to win. When an athlete works as hard as Tebow, there needs to be something at the end of the road besides holding a clipboard. The best thing to love about Tebow right now is that he has a chip on his shoulder and wants to prove all skeptics wrong including Merril Hoge. Right now, the Broncos have been projected to win between 5 to 7 games this season by most experts and that factors in Orton playing a full 16 game schedule. If Tebow is declared the starter for this season he will win 7 to 10 games in his first season as a full time starter. It probably would not look pretty, but the job will get done.

Tebow Going Forward
Tebow is more than capable right now of executing a John Fox run-oriented offensive game plan at a high level for the Broncos. With the city behind him and most of the NFL, there seems to be no reason to hold him up any longer. By completing, 6 of 7 passes for 91 yards, in his 1st preseason performance this season against the Cowboys, Tebow put on just the type of efficient performance that produces wins in the NFL. I wish Orton would have been traded to the Vikings because he would have done great this year, but he will never get any job security in Denver. It is time to find out what Tebow can do. He should start all of this season and next. If he were to fail, then he fails, but that is not going to happen. Tebow should be declared the starter this season because he is ready.